Community groups have spoken of their "fury" after work began on Tuesday to lay synthetic turf at EPL side Hull City's Airco Arena, according to James Campbell of the HULL DAILY MAIL. The groups "are facing eviction from the arena to make way for the indoor football pitch" -- which will help Hull City comply with Premier League rules on youth development. Last week, the grassroots groups believed that they had been "given a reprieve when the Tigers revealed plans to construct a separate 'bubble pitch' nearby." But the Stadium Management Company, which runs the venue, said the council "had failed to back the alternative proposals and work had now started on a pitch inside the Airco." Humberside Netball Association Chair Ann Peak, whose group uses the facility, said, "I'm furious. The news about the turf came as a massive shock and goes against everything we've been told." The bubble pitch plan would have involved constructing a "new 3G surface behind the arena, covered by a plastic roof." It would require planning permission and "need to be ready by September to meet a Premier League deadline." Council leader Steve Brady insisted the council had "bent over backwards" to support the club to improve its academy, including by promising to "expedite any planning or other permissions required" to meet the deadline. But he said that the club had "made certain requests of the council which could not possibly or legally be fulfilled." These included a guarantee the dome pitch would be granted planning consent, "which is unlawful," and a contribution of £425,000 ($630,900) toward the £850,000 ($1.26M) cost (HULL DAILY MAIL, 4/15). The installation of Philips ArenaVision LED floodlighting will mean that Hull City's KC Stadium meets the latest TV broadcast requirements as directed by the Premier League and fulfills all contemporary and future field-of-play requirements such as light level, uniformity, glare rating and HDTV super slow motion broadcasting. The flexible floodlighting will also help to transform the stadium into a multi-purpose entertainment venue. Optimized for TV coverage of football and other sporting events, the Philips system's flexibility and control system means it can also be switched to provide lighting for specific conditions such as dimmed energy-saving levels for cleaning and maintenance purposes, as well as training level lighting (Hull City).
